The villa and the garden

Located at the entrance of the town of Grosio, in the historic center, Villa Visconti Venosta owes its current appearance to the Marchese Emilio who, at the end of the 19th century, wanted to renovate the old family home for his stays in Valtellina. The Marchese also purchased the surrounding land to create the wide park, that is full of beautiful old trees, and now is public. A hawthorn hedge and a high wall once guaranteed privacy for the family who came to spend the summer here. The Villa appears today in all its sober elegance; it has a U-shaped structure with a Renaissance-style central body with a portico surmounted by a lovely loggia and two wings that enclose the courtyard. The left wing is older and was sacked and burned in 1620. Then it was rebuilt at the behest of the Jesuit Marcantonio Venosta at the end of the 17th century. The right wing, which is more modern, is the result of the renovations commissioned by the Marchese Emilio. The Villa now houses the Civic Library and the Museum that occupies the first floor, the noble one inhabited by the Marchesi, and, in the west wing, the second floor once reserved for servants.